Impossible
by Suzuku90
Summary: After an accident that changes Ed's life, he and Alphonse head to Hogwarts to find a way to reverse the effects, finding much more than they bargained for. RoyEd shonen ai, AlWin, RoyRiza hints. Harry Potter pairings to be decided. Chimera!Ed.
1. The Transmutation

**Chapter 1: The Transmutation**

Edward Elric sighed.

He and his brother had returned to their cluttered apartment with a new mission from Colonel Mustang. It was clearly stated that the Fuhrer needed the case to be solved as soon as possible, but Ed dreaded the assignment. Citizens from all around Central had been disappearing at a constant rate- about five went missing every week. He was to find out where they were being kept, who had them, and why they had been taken. The Colonel had given them a little piece of information on whoever was behind the kidnappings from a recently abandoned site, which had held hastily hidden transmutation circles- ones meant for some sort of human or animal transmutation- and worn metal caged with strands of fur scattered across their bases; this made it seem more than a little likely that someone was experimenting with animals and the missing people. However, the mission had to be completed, and before more citizens went missing.

Now, it was dark out, and Ed made sure that his brother was really sleeping before grabbing his cherry red coat and heading out into the streets. He knew Al would want to come with him, but if there was a chance that the chimeras- animal and human- were being created, he wasn't going to let him risk it, especially since it had only been a year since Al had been restored.

Ed shivered slightly as a soft breeze blew by. Despite the fact that it was only in the first week of August, the weather was unusually cold, and had been for the past few days. Sparing only a brief glance of longing at the few windows through which filtered warm light, he sped up his pace, intent on finishing his work and heading back to his comfortable bed.

As he reached the old ware house he had come to investigate- it was one place on a list of many that Ed planned to check that night- he had only a second to react when a sturdy knife came flying towards his head. He ducked down, letting it bury itself in the door's rotting wood, and launched himself at his attacker, kicking at the man's shin, making the cloaked figure leap back and clutch his injured leg. Ed transmuted his automail into a smooth blade and met the other one's dagger after a quick recovery. The blonde was about to kick the hooded figure once more when he heard a dull crack and felt an aching numbness echoing throughout his skull, and the world went black.

* * *

"C-Colonel?" Al asked shakily as he heard the phone being picked up.

"Yes, Alphonse?" Roy responded politely, stifling a yawn as he glanced at the clock. 12:37.

"Have you seen brother? I got up to find something to eat, but he's not here at home, and I know you warned him not to work on the mission at night, but I'm worried that that's what he's doing…" Al's worried voice trailed off.

Roy froze at the boy's words. How could Fullmetal be stupid enough to go off on his own, and at night? He grimly labeled this as a rescue mission in the back of his mind. "I'll call the others and we'll help search for him. Don't worry too much, Alphonse, I'm sure he's fine," he said before hanging up. _He'd better be alright…_

* * *

Edward blearily blinked open his eyes, wincing slightly at the dull throbbing sensation of his head. Trying to ignore the pain, he sat up slowly, leaning his back against cold iron bars for support.

_Wonderful,_ he thought as he examined the room he was in. A whole wall was lined with cages similar to the one in which he was trapped, about half of them holding animals and the other half with humans. Ed narrowed his eyes as he recognized a few of their faces from photos of the kidnapped.

Uneven stacks of jumbled notes and books rested on a beaten oaken desk, but what caught the young alchemist's attention was the complex array drawn in the center of the room. Before he could look at it for long enough to determine its use, however, a man entered the room. All Ed could make out of him under his black hood was his smirk, which only grew wider as he noticed the blond kid glaring daggers at him. Striding smoothly over to Ed's cage, dark robes billowing out magnificently behind him, the man bent down, unlocked the cage, and forcibly dragged the struggling teen towards the circle, where he swiftly shined a flashlight into Ed's eyes. The blinded teen reflexively covered his golden orbs with his hands, defiantly attempting to rise from the chill concrete floor, unable to see the small animal curiously approaching him, or the man placing his pale hands on the edge of the dangerous array.

The seven figures jogging towards the shed broke into an all-out sprint as they heard Edward's bloodcurdling scream break into the silence of the night.


	2. Changes

**Chapter 2: Changes**

The place was destroyed beyond recognition. Dully gleaming iron bars, formerly walls for cages, lay broken amidst the flames that had resulted from the explosion. Notes and books lay burning with planks of moldy wood, all of their painstakingly researched contents now unreadable. Those of the animals and hostages that were lucky enough to survive had already fled; the rest were drenched in their own blood, pleading for help and forgiveness as the fire slowly took their lives. And, in the center of everything, was Edward Elric.

He was curled up on the ground, eyes shut and face twisted in pain as his own blood slowly seeped from deep wounds scattered over his whole body, shimmering in the flickering light. It hurt, so bad… almost like losing his arm and leg all over again… but this time, there was no one to help him, no friend to save him…

Shuddering, he remembered the unique pain from just minutes ago- the flesh on his head forcefully stretching itself out, his teeth feeling as if they had been repeatedly cut with a knife, his spine, elongating and thrusting itself out of him…

A faint noise was heard in the near distance. Opening his eyes slightly, he only had the chance to glimpse a group of figures rushing towards him before blacking out.

* * *

"What… do…"

"…know… should… him… can't…"

"…hospital… Ed… refuse…"

Ed could only hear a jumble of scattered words, said by voices that sounded as if they should be familiar to him… but it was so hard to concentrate... if he could just focus!...

He bolted upright, gasping for air, senses reeling at the sudden movement. A hand, two, no, three hands rested on his shoulders, in an attempt to comfort him, but it only shocked his body, making him recoil from the touch. He buried his head in the closest thing that was soft: a fluffy blue cushion.

More pressure was added to the comfortable couch- more people had sat down. Edward slowly came back to his senses, finally squinting open his eyes in the bright light. Looking to his left, he saw R-… _Mustang _on the couch; lazily swinging his head the other way, he saw a worried expression on Al's face. When he opened his mouth to apologize, though, all that came out was a scratchy sound. He closed it sheepishly.

"Finally awake, Fullmetal? You look like you were in a _little_ trouble and were _short_ on help," smirked Mustang. Ed bit back a nasty retort as Lieutenant Hawkeye stepped in the room, handing a glass of water to him.

"Drink," she ordered. He complied, sitting up slowly and sipping the liquid after noticing the gun at her belt.

After an uncomfortable silence, Havoc spoke up. "So, Boss, what happened back there? You do look pretty beaten up," he observed.

Ed stopped drinking, holding his half-empty cup and tilting his head to the side. He sat like that for a moment before deciding he was hungry. If he spoke, he could run off to the kitchen. If he didn't, they'd keep bugging him for an explanation until he finally gave in. Or he could just run off to the kitchen right now… but then they'd shout at him, and his ears were hurt… his hearing was strangely sensitive at the moment.

"…I went searching for the kidnapper," he began. "Got caught up in a fight, then some idiot came up behind me and knocked me out. No, Al, I'm fine." He glared at his brother, who had stood up to get something. "I woke up in some small room, with lots of notes and books and c-… and then there was a blast that wrecked the whole place," he quickly edited out the cages and prisoners, figuring he could find out the rest on his own.

"And that, of course, also explains the alchemic light," the Colonel pointed out.

"…alchemic light? But… nobody performed any alchemy," Edward asked, confused. Then it hit him. He could remember the rest of what happened- the strange man, the transmutation circle, the fact that he was _in _the transmutation circle… his face paled in horror.

"Brother?... what's wrong, Brother?" Al asked quietly, noticing how Ed's breath was now coming in short, ragged gasps, his eyes wide.

Ed smiled weakly. "I'll… I'll be right back, Al…" He stood up hesitantly, as if he didn't trust his own feet to hold him. Suddenly, he bolted around the corner into the small hallway, and shut the door to the bathroom.

He sighed in relief as the mirror showed only his normal reflection- if just a bit battered. He was about to return to the others when he noticed a couple bumps on his head. Leaning in closer to the mirror, the texture on the small bumps looked a bit… different. Smoother. And they looked the slightest shade darker than his golden locks. His left hand slowly rose up to his head… and poked one of the bumps. It flinched back, and Ed gasped. Slowly, he moved it using the muscles on his head, and the other 'bump' joined it.

Ears.

Shocked, he opened his mouth.

Pointed teeth.

His hand ran down the length of his spine, stopping when he felt his skin turn to fur. The thing flicked around, the tip of it hovering by his cheek for a moment before slowly descending to a more comfortable height.

A tail.

Not to mention how much larger his eyes had become.

He wasn't about to scream, oh no, he never screamed, but he _really _felt like it at that moment. He was prepared to spend the rest of the day sitting in there, sulking, when a soft knock was heard on the door.

"Brother? Are you alright?"

_Of course I'm not alright! I'm half cat! Do you have any idea how humiliating this is?! _Ed debated telling his brother the truth or not… his ears were pretty tired from being pressed against his head for so long, and he couldn't keep his tail hidden for a while without becoming too uncomfortable. Plus, this was _Al._ After everything, he at least deserved to know. Ed made up his mind.

"…Al, can you keep a secret?"

"Of course I can, Brother," came the reply.

Edward took a deep breath and opened the door.


	3. Secret's Out

**Chapter 3: Secret's Out**

"Brother, what's..." Al's voice trailed off, and his eyes widened. "Are those… ears?" He asked hesitantly, eyeing them with some sort of suspicious fear.

Ed lowered his eyes to the ground, ashamed. "Yes," he whispered. "Just… don't tell anyone. Please…" He closed his eyes, waiting for the rejection that was sure to come.

"So… that's what happened last night."

A heavy silence hung in the air.

"But we'll make this right, won't we Brother? We got my body back, didn't we? All it'll take is a little research." Ed lifted his head, surprised at how Al could be so… _accepting_ of what had happened. And calm! Well, that was always one trait he had had that his brother hadn't.

The younger of the two opened his mouth as if to say something, then stopped as if he was unsure of what to say. Mustering up enough courage, he spoke.

"So, do you… you know… have a… tail?"

_That_ had been unexpected.

He sighed. "Yes, Al, I have a tail." As if to prove its existence, the furry appendage popped up from under his coat and flicked Al in the cheek, making him jump. When it was then grabbed.

"Hey!"

Al giggled and- reluctantly- released the tail. But he wasn't quite finished yet.

A hand quickly reached up to Ed's head, stroking his large ears, and cutting off any form of protest from the elder. Unthinkingly, he closed his eyes in pleasure, a loud, rumbling purr rising from his chest, his head pressing against the hand that was making him feel so good. As far as he was concerned, this could go on forever. But all good things must come to an end.

Ed's stomach growled.

At first he was content with ignoring the disturbance, but Al removed his hand, blushing, and pointed out the obvious. "You were… _purring_…"

Ed's ears flickered in annoyance, his face turning as red as his coat. Clearing his throat, he started towards the kitchen- which he could find easily now due to his heightened senses. It was another change he had noticed in himself. All the lights were brighter than they should be, he could hear every breath that was made, every smell was much stronger than before- it was all unnatural, but just further proved that what had happened was real.

He didn't want to think about the fact that this was permanent.

Alphonse decided to get back to the others as Ed stalked into the kitchen.

Someone had left a pizza to bake in the oven, its melted cheese just turning to a golden-brown color. The scent was pleasing, but not what he was searching for. Nothing in any of the cupboards smelled quite right, either. Dissatisfied, he began to raid the refrigerator.

Leftovers were carelessly rotting away in small plastic tubs, but there were also some packaged goods stored in the fridge. Digging through the food, he was about to give up when he came across a small package. Brown paper was wrapped around something rectangular in shape, but it felt soft, like… meat. Ed's eyes glinted manically as he unfolded and removed the packaging, uncovering the oily pink flesh and shimmering silvery scales of a fresh salmon filet, its heavenly aroma seeming to choke the air in its grasp. Mouth watering, he was about to sink his long canines into the delicacy when Roy stepped into the room.

They stared at each other for a moment, then the Colonel broke the silence. "What exactly are you doing with my dinner, Fullmetal?" he demanded, lifting an eyebrow in amusement. Ed hissed at him, only remembering at the last moment to keep his ears down and tail hidden in his coat.

"None of your business, bastard," he snarled, protectively holding the fish closer to his body.

Mustang chuckled. "Considering that this is _my _house and that is _my_ food, I do believe that it _is_ my business. Now, return my dinner to where it belongs- or are you too _short_ to do that?" He smirked condescendingly as he threw the insult at the vertically-challenged teen.

Ed was about to explode with an equally harsh rant, but the oven timer went off and he jumped a foot into the air as it stung his ears. _Dammit, I gotta get used to this…_ Mustang placed the pizza onto a pan, retrieving a pizza cutter from one of the nearby drawers and slicing the pizza into eighths before carrying it into the other room. Ed followed, still holding his preferred meal as he sat down on one of the navy blue couches, next to Fuery and Al, the second of who nearly burst out laughing at the sight of his brother holding his prey; everyone else just dismissed it as a strange taste in food as they grabbed a slice of pizza.

Save for one.

"I thought I told you to put that fish back, Fullmetal," Roy said, receiving an icy glare in return. He ignored it and continued. "It's not even cooked. I suppose if you were really desperate you could eat some of those," he joked, waving one hand at a dimly lit fish tank sitting across the room on a small table, while the other snatched the second-to-last piece of pizza- the last left for Ed.

Tossing the food from his hands to be caught by Al, the blond stood up and walked across the plush ruby carpet, kneeling next to the container and staring at the colorful flashes darting through it. He observed them with a careful gaze, never letting too many of them out of his sight at one time. Giving in to instinct, he waited until the last moment to drop his left hand into the slightly rippling water, unsheathing an array of thin, sharp claws to impale the tiny creatures. He raised his hand out of the water, allowing them to flop about for a minute or two before taking a hearty bite out of the largest of the three. It tasted salty, but not too bad, and he continued his meal until one was left- at which time a gun was held to his head. His ears perked up in alarm, and his tail started twitching nervously as he realized what he had just done. Gulping, he turned around slowly, retracting his newly-discovered claws and raising his arms in the air.

Riza was holding the firearm to his head, her hand steady even as her face betrayed the slightest hint of fear. Havoc's unlit cigarette was now lying on the floor as its owner's mouth hung open on his pale face. Similar expressions were presented on the others' faces, aside from Al; he looked uneasy, and shrugged helplessly as Ed watched him.

"H-h-he's… h-half ca-cat…" Breda stammered out, his fear of animals showing through his terrified face. Falman placed his hand on his friend's shoulder to try and eliminate the fear, although it didn't seem to work.

After another pause, Roy cleared his throat. "Well then, Fullmetal," he said shakily, "it looks like you really have gotten yourself into a mess this time. Lieutenant, lower your weapon- I doubt he'll attack us at the moment in his present condition." Both Elrics involuntarily flinched at the last statement. "So, then, w-"

Mustang's sentence was cut short as a loud _peck_ was heard from the window. He looked confused for a moment, but that was replaced with a fearful understanding as he stood up and opened the window. A snowy owl flew in with a letter, which Roy took from it tentatively and opened. His expression became one of both joy and relief, and he wrote on another piece of paper a quick response, tying it to the bird's leg and saving the poor thing from Ed's predatory gaze. It left, and everyone looked at their superior expectantly.

"Looks like we've found a way to help you with your predicament, Fullmetal."


	4. Exploration

**Chapter 4**

Edward lay on one of the soft couches, his trademark coat hanging over the back of it. He replayed the whole conversation in his head again, still puzzled at his superior's calm response to the owl flying in through the window.

Mustang had refused to explain why the tasty-looking bird was there, or what was in the letter he received. He had worn a smug demeanor for the rest of the evening as the group kept prodding him for an answer, and, not finding one, they started to discuss what would happen with Ed. The chimera had merely sat there, nibbling a bit on his precious salmon, occasionally making a comment here or there, but staying silent for the most part.

After an hour or so, the lower-ranking officers began to excuse themselves and make their ways home. However, Mustang had made it clear that the Elrics would not be heading back to the military dorms for the night- it would be too risky. The end result was that the two young alchemists would be sleeping at the colonel's place.

Ed heaved a sigh, bored out of his mind. He felt restless- probably a result of his waking up late in the day. He _had_, after all, slept for around twenty hours straight. Quietly lowering his legs to the floor so as not to wake his brother- who was fast asleep on a similar couch in the same room- he decided to explore his new surroundings.

The room he was currently in had three of the comfortable leather couches positioned like three sides of a square, with a small mahogany table set in the center. The rectangular fish tank, now missing a few more of its inhabitants- Ed derived some sort of sick enjoyment from watching them squirm on his claws- was dimly lit, casting a ghostly illumination on the nearby section of the ivory walls. Finding nothing of interest at the moment, Ed slinked off towards the kitchen, which was located through the wall by the fish.

Stepping onto the hardwood floor caused a small creak to come from it, but not enough to wake anyone else from their slumber. The kitchen was relatively small, although it still had all that any other would have: a refrigerator connected to the freezer, a stove with an oven, a sink, and a few drawers to hold silverware and anything else used for either cooking or eating. There was also a small cupboard for other foodstuffs. The blond drifted through the room quickly, as he wasn't the slightest bit hungry, and came upon the short hallway. Discovering a new room that could be accessed through it, he entered.

The place looked more like somewhere to study than a room belonging to a certain arrogant colonel, but then again, Ed reminded himself, he was still an alchemist. A desk was pushed up against the wall, papers scattered across its surface, pens lying forgotten with them and among the pages that had fallen to the ground. There was also a window with plain black curtains covering it, halting the bright starlight from intruding into the room, making it dark even to Ed's superior senses. Closing the door behind him, he turned on the old lamp that was on the desk and sat in the chair.

There were notes on flame alchemy, and a few other types, though nothing too complicated. Sifting through the rest of the papers, a frown appeared on his face. Obviously Roy had been studying human transmutation a fair amount after Hughes' death, if the sketches and formulas were any indication. The corners of his mouth turned down even further as he came across some… _interesting_ theories.

His eyes scrolled along the page, reading with a confused expression. They seemed to be trying to find out where different materials and forces came from. Was Roy mad? Alchemists used the materials in their general area, and the energy… Ed shuddered, pushing the thought out of his mind as he remembered what his father had told him about alchemic energy.

Moving on to investigating something else, he decided to look through the drawers. One of them held blank paper, another some spare pens, and the third had an interesting box. He reached in and took it out.

The container was about thirteen inches long, made of a thin yet steady papery material. Turning it on its side, there was a single silver word in fancy writing: _Ollivander's._ He lifted the lid off, not knowing what to expect, and just staring dumbly at what he found.

A wooden stick.

Out of all things, Roy had a _wooden stick_ in his desk.

The thought was absurd.

It was a boring little thing. An intricate carving was engraved into the oaken handle, but the rest of it was plain, up to the tip at twelve inches. Pleasing to the eye, but only for a few minutes at most.

He tossed it aside to look for something else interesting.

That small action was regretted an instant later.


	5. Confusion

**Chapter 5**

A bright red light flashed throughout the room, startling Ed. He turned around quickly, falling into a fighting stance, prepared to fight whoever had created the light.

No one was there.

His ears rose back into a more comfortable position, but he stayed tense and alert. Slowly, he stepped forward, sniffing the air cautiously for unknown scents. It wasn't too difficult to determine what or who certain scents belonged to- he already had an excellent memory, and he could easily pair the scents with people by the way they acted, or by their habits. The skill was still relatively new, though, so he couldn't be absolutely sure of how everything smelled.

Nothing was out of place.

Frowning, Ed bent down and retrieved the odd stick that had previously been stored and forgotten inside of an old desk. There was a slight difference in how it felt now than how it had felt barely a minute ago.

There was a fading aura of energy around it, not unlike that of an alchemic array. The teen slowly checked it over again, paying close attention to every miniscule detail on the wood. There was not even a crack in it, nor were there any hidden transmutation circles at the base or in the carved design. He contemplated slicing the thing in half. It could solve some unanswered questions, but if some sort of alchemy prevented him from repairing it once he was finished, what would he tell Mustang? It was just a piece of wood, but it might have some sort of sentimental value to the colonel. Deciding to return to the room and make his decision later, Ed started to look over the notes again.

* * *

Sunlight streamed into the house, awakening its inhabitants as they neared consciousness. Roy groaned, closing his eyes against the sudden glare and turning onto his side, his back facing the window. _Just five more minutes…_ he pleaded, attempting to fall asleep again even though he knew it was now futile. His arm was resting on something pleasantly warm and soft, which he subconsciously pulled closer to him in an attempt to stay warm and comfortable in his bed. A contented sigh was released as he relaxed, the morning sun no longer one of his problems.

When the 'thing' cuddled up against him, he took no notice of it. Slowly, his hand drifted up and down its back in a calm, repetitive motion, causing them both to come close to returning to sleep.

Up until the point where a noisy, pleased purr was released, making a startled Roy blink down at his blond subordinate. He lay there dumbly, before noticing exactly what the scene must've looked like. A deep blush rose to his cheeks. Abruptly, he stopped his hand's movement, causing the younger alchemist to stir in protest.

Hastily stepping out of the bed, he dressed in his standard military uniform and glanced at the clock.

10:15.

He mentally cursed. He was _supposed_ to be there about an hour ago! Of course, there would still be plenty of time to discuss everything over the next week or so, but he had a lot of things to sort out with the rest of the-

A knock sounded on the bedroom door, interrupting Roy's train of thought. Straightening his jacket, he opened the door to see Alphonse's worried face staring back at him. Opening his mouth to speak, he was cut short as the young Elric spoke first.

"Colonel, have you seen Ed? I can't find him… do you think he might have left the house?" Al was naturally fearful for his brother, as he could do, and has done, many reckless things that could land him in a mountain of trouble.

Roy nodded his head. Al's worry for his brother was understandable, and quite expected. "Yes, Alphonse, I have. I found him asleep in the kitchen when I went to get myself a snack last night. He seemed uncomfortable on the couch, so I just let him take the bed," he smoothly lied, still trying to think of a plausible reason for exactly _why_ Fullmetal had been curled up next to him- and in his bed, to make things worse. He also started to berate himself for not being fully awake yet and for providing only a pitiful excuse. However, Al seemed to accept the response, although a look of suspicion and - amusement? - was present in his eyes.

He smiled happily, though, and said his thanks before heading off to the kitchen to finish making breakfast for the three of them- bacon and eggs, from what could be smelled. With one last glance back at the sleeping Edward, Roy followed behind, in desperate need of some coffee.

* * *

Edward curled up against the source of his warmth, oblivious to the source's embarrassment and only paying attention to the fact that the hand had stopped petting him. His ears twitched in disappointment, and the purring died down as the realization that it wouldn't return anytime soon. He stayed there, on the edge of waking, barely registering the two voices as he silently mourned the loss of warmth.

It was only when the fresh aroma of bacon wafted into the room did he come to. Eyes fluttering open, he sat up and yawned before happening upon the realization that he didn't recognize this room. Opening his mouth slightly, there was the strong scent of Roy… he leaned down and sniffed the sheets of the bed tentatively. They possessed the strong scent of the colonel.

Wondering how he could have possibly ended up there, Ed jumped out and, after making sure he was still fully dressed, exited through the door.

Reaching the living room, he plopped down onto the single unoccupied couch and grabbed the plate Al had set out for him. A few slices of bacon, a fried egg, and a piece of toast. They were scarfed down before a whole minute had passed- Ed _did_ have a large appetite, after all.

Once they had all eaten, Roy cleared his throat. "As you must remember, I'm leaving this morning for some extra work I need to do. I trust you'll keep the house in good condition while I'm gone, _isn't that right, _Fullmetal? I'll return in a week or so. _Be careful_ until then, understand?" His tone was strangely serious in that last statement, conveying that his words were not to be taken lightly. The two younger alchemists nodded, surprised at the change in mood and absence of the smirk… and the frown only grew deeper as his gaze dropped to Ed's pockets.

"Edward," the colonel growled out darkly, and said alchemist gulped audibly, ears flickering about nervously. "What do you have in your pocket?"

Ed stopped fidgeting, nearly sighing in relief from being released from the scrutiny. He took the weird stick out from his pocket, having only just noticed that he must have stuffed it in his pocket. Holding it up, he asked, "You mean this thing?" Roy shook his head 'yes' very slowly, his glare never leaving Ed's face. The younger of the two hastily passed it along, not wanting to be on the man's bad side when he was like this… but why was it so important?

As Roy stood, a smirk finally alighted on his face. "See you next week, Fullmetal," he said, turning in place and disappearing with a loud _crack_ and leaving two very shocked and confused alchemists in his living room.


	6. The Order

**Chapter 6**

Edward stared, unable to believe his eyes. He shook his head, telling himself over and over again that it was just his imagination. People couldn't just disappear like that! It didn't make any sense!

Al just sat where he was, wide-eyed. It didn't make sense to him either, but maybe it was just a little trick. The only problem with that theory was that even though the colonel and Ed generally disliked each other, it wouldn't be like Mustang to play a prank on them.

The brothers sat in silence, struggling to understand what had happened, when the doorbell rang.

Ed jumped at the sound, then relaxed once he realized what it was. He quickly put his coat on, tail hiding beneath it, and his ears were flattened against his head. Al stood up, answering the door and finding Hawkeye standing there. "Hello Miss Hawkeye," he greeted politely.

"Alphonse," Hawkeye acknowledged. Al stepped aside to let her in, shutting the door behind him. The lieutenant made herself comfortable on one of the seats before speaking again.

"I suppose the colonel isn't up yet?" she asked.

Al hesitated a moment before responding. "Actually, lieutenant, he is… but he sort of… um… disappeared," he offered, fidgeting along with his brother.

Riza raised an eyebrow. "He disappeared," she repeated, the dull tone of her voice clearly showed that she wasn't buying that excuse- at least, she thought it was an excuse. When she received only silence, she sighed, irritated. "What happened?" she asked, watching for their reactions.

Ed looked to be deep in thought, but Al shifted nervously. "Well, brother had a wooden stick in his pocket, and when the colonel noticed it he was pretty angry. He got it from brother, and then… he turned and disappeared with a loud cracking noise," he said.

Riza narrowed her eyes, not knowing whether to believe them or not. They could be making it up… but why would they lie to her? She went over the description again, eyes widening as she realized what this meant. Quickly, she stood up, nearly unbalancing herself, and wandered around the room, searching for something. The brothers exchanged a confused glance, curious of the lieutenant's reaction.

At last, Hawkeye emerged from another room, holding the letter in her hands and slowly scanning over it, obviously disliking the contents, if the expression on her face was enough information. Edward was about to ask for the letter when Hawkeye suddenly struck a match and held it to one of the paper's corners. Ed shut his mouth against an angry retort at a glare from her, deciding he would rather not be shot at.

Hawkeye turned to face them. "If you encounter anything else strange like what you said happened, report it to me immediately," she said strictly, a threat behind her words, before leaving the house.

Ed watched her leave with the feeling that something was going on that nobody wanted him to find out about. But he wasn't going to just sit there doing nothing all day… he made his way towards Mustang's small library, determined to find some answers.

* * *

Harry, Ron, Hermione, Ginny, Fred, and George were happily (unhappily) cleaning out one of the myriad old rooms in Number 12 Grimmauld Place when a loud _crack_was heard. They jumped slightly, having gotten used to the sound of Apparating from the twins doing it all the time, yet still not too familiar with it. They turned to face the newcomer.

He was a handsome young man, with smooth, pale skin, hair the same shade as his onyx eyes, wearing a crisp blue uniform that only seemed to accent his figure… it took the two girls a couple moments to compose themselves after sighting him, and their cheeks were tinged pink once they had. The group stood in silence before the stranger began to speak.

"I do believe that this is the Order's headquarters?" he asked smoothly, his voice yet another feature making the girls melt.

The others weren't so sure they could trust him yet. They glared at him, none moving forward to speak.

However, the door chose that moment to open, revealing Professor Snape. His expression turned from a malicious sneer to a smirk as his gaze fell upon the newcomer. He turned, glancing back at the colonel once before exiting the room, a sure sign to follow him. Mustang complied with the unspoken request, gliding past the students and out the door.

* * *

The group was called down for dinner hours later, having gone through the whole day without seeing the strange man again, but definitely talking about him amongst themselves. It wasn't much surprise that they saw him again at the table, now wearing common black robes. The meal started out with an awkward silence.

"So…" Harry began, then hesitated as everyone looked at him. He mustered up the courage to speak. "Who are you, sir?" he asked as kindly as he could, watching the man across from him grow a smirk not unlike Snape's.

"I'm honored that you should ask that of me, Harry," Roy said with a hint of sarcasm, recognizing the boy by his scar. "My name is Roy Mustang- or rather, _Professor_ Mustang. I will be teaching a new subject at your school, Hogwarts."

_A new subject?_ This was interesting news for the students.

"Sir, if you don't mind me asking, what subject are you going to teach?" Hermione asked, curiosity shining in her eyes. A German teacher, coming to Hogwarts… _it must be something pretty hard to learn,_ she thought.

"Alchemy," he replied, a hint of pride in his voice. He immediately decided to watch the three closely- the redhead, the black-haired kid, and the smart blonde as they exchanged a glance that led him to believe that they knew something they shouldn't.

Hermione looked back at Roy. "You're the first professor we've had that comes from a different country," she said, and at Mustang's surprised look, she explained, "I can tell by your accent. You're German, aren't you? There's never been a Hogwarts exchange student, either…" She trailed off as she noticed a mischievous glint in Roy's eyes.

"Well, I guess that's about to change," he said, fingering two familiar pieces of paper hidden in his pocket, which he had just remembered…


	7. Letters

**Chapter 7**

A week had passed since Roy had disappeared from Amestris, and the Elrics were still no closer to finding out what had happened to him- or Riza, who had mysteriously disappeared after leaving with the letter.

Ed tossed another worn book over his shoulder, tail waving as restlessly as it had for the last few hours. He and Al had gone through every single one of the colonel's books, and were scanning them yet again for any grain of information they could find. It seemed their research skills had abandoned them, though, and it didn't help that half of the books were completely fiction. Seemed the colonel enjoyed reading up on 'magical theory' every now and then.

He flicked his ears and stood up, stretching. "Hey Al, I'm gonna go get something to eat. Want me to get you anything?" The younger merely shook his head, thoroughly engrossed in what he was reading.

Al had been out to restock the scarce amount of food in the house, the result being that they now had plenty of fish to eat (he wasn't very fond of watching his brother munch on still-wriggling guppies). Ed picked out one of the filets and, quickly checking to see that it wasn't in any way turning green, curled up on a couch and started to nibble at it.

The alchemist was comfortably halfway through his meal when something swooped in from out the window.

He jumped, startled, then folded his ears back and hissed, baring his fangs at the owl. The poor thing had no warning as the chimera leaped toward it, claws unsheathed, barely missing his target. He scrambled to get up, pouncing once more in an attempt to feed on some fresh prey, and again crashing into the floor as the bird flapped up to the ceiling, landing on a hanging light. It simply stared, hooting down in mockery.

Ed glared back at it, stepping back to see it better. His right foot lowered onto the floor… or what was supposed to be the floor. Instead, it landed on a piece of paper, causing Ed to lose his balance and fall backwards, head hitting the arm of a sofa. He clutched at his head angrily, searching slowly for the thing that had caused him this misery. The golden eyes ended their search on a beige envelope sealed with red wax.

He held it up, inspecting the address- _Mr. Edward Elric, 14 Eastern Ave., Central, Amestris._ His eyebrows rose a bit, and he didn't know whether to trust whoever had sent the letter- nobody knew he was staying at Roy's. He flipped it over, broke the wax seal- four different animals around an H, with some words printed underneath- and opened the letter.

_Dear Mr. Edward Elric,_

_We are pleased to announce that you have been accepted into Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Enclosed is a list of materials you will need for the school year. Your commanding officer can provide you with more details._

_We await your owl by no later than September first._

_**Minerva McGonagall**_

_Minerva McGonagall, Deputy Headmistress_

"…a _magic_ school," Ed grumbled. He didn't know what to make of it- they were most likely insane, suggesting that such a thing as magic exists. But there was also the fact that they knew where he was, and if they knew where he was… they'd also know exactly _what_ he was. So… crazy spies, perhaps?

He shook his head, remembering Hawkeye's words from before: _"__If you encounter anything else strange like what you said happened, report it to me immediately."_ The owls were certainly strange, and the whole idea of 'magic' was pretty weird…

Another owl flew through the window, carrying yet another letter. The creature didn't know how lucky it was (or maybe it did) that Alphonse walked in at just that moment, quickly restraining his brother from instinctively attacking it. "Brother, calm down! Can't you just stick with the fish?"

Ed stubbornly kept struggling, claws unsheathed and outstretched towards the bird. Al sighed, then hit him on the head, forcing him to stop.

"Come on, Al!" he whined. "Can't I just have a little taste? Al… I thought you were on my side!" He struggled a bit more before giving up- he never had beaten his brother in a fight.

Al sighed again. "I don't think the owl would appreciate that, brother. Or whoever sent these letters," he added, noticing the one Ed had discarded and the one that the second owl was standing next to, on the little table. "What's it for, anyway?" he asked, opening the one addressed to him.

His expression stayed curious once he had finished reading, although there was a hint of confusion there as well. "Did you get one like this?"

"Yeah," Ed said. "Don't see why they'd want us to go to a 'magic school', though. Unless that's what they call alchemy. That would also explain why R- why _Mustang_ was mentioned in the letter." They both looked over their supply lists, more confusion evident on both their faces as they recognized some of the titles from Mustang's library.

They sat in silence for a short while, before deciding to try out this school and find out what the colonel was hiding from them.

* * *

Roy sat down wearily at his desk, reviewing the simplest concepts of alchemy, step by step. He had to create an agenda for the class he was going to teach in a few weeks, and it would be best to start it early rather than wait until the last couple of days.

It would have been nice to return to Central before leaving for Hogwarts, but he had too much to do. Luckily, the hearing two days ago had gone in Harry's favor, and so reduced the amount of work he would have to complete. There was still much to work out with the ministry, and Roy needed to meet up with a few old friends while in the wizarding world.

Of course, he had thought of the Elrics a lot during the past week. Their expressions had been absolutely priceless when he disapparated- even though he had received quite a nasty Howler from Riza the next day. Roy shook his head. He'd explain everything to them when they got to the school.

Their first letters had come just after they had fallen asleep and Roy had, at first, been pretty shocked. It could have been a trick, he supposed, but how would anyone but Dumbledore know where they were? Regardless, he'd taken the letters with him, deciding that if it _was_ the headmaster, more letters would be sure to come.

It was all he could do to not worry about the amount of questions he'd be asked- the trio of Gryffindor had already given him countless headaches. Hermione had been bugging him about his class and Germany, Ron tried to make small talk but always failed miserably, and Harry talked little if at all to Roy- probably receiving all of his information from his friends.

Thinking about this brought him back to the subject of the Elrics. Which houses would they land in? No surprise if they both end up in Ravenclaw, he mused. Would they make any friends? Al definitely would, but it was doubtful of Ed. Then another thought hit him.

Would they even know English?

* * *

_Hope you like._

_I would've gotten this up earlier, but I've been working on my Ed cosplay- I'm going to this little anime party thing at a shop in the closest mall. I even dyed my hair gold (not that it made too much difference…), but unfortunately I couldn't make an arm with such short notice._

_Also, note that I have no access to the book, so please correct anything that I get wrong._

_Please review!_

_Anonymous reviewer(s):_

_**Anonymous:**__ heh, Riza just hates when Roy uses magic in front of muggles, it jeopardizes the whole wizarding world. And yes, they love their questions xD_


	8. Diagon Alley

**Chapter 8: Diagon Alley**

_**-Two weeks and four days later (August 28)—  
**_

"Hey, Al, where d'you think this place is?" Ed asked grumpily as he and Al walked through the crowded streets of London. "It can't be that hard to find, if all of these so-called 'wizards' go there… so where the hell is it?!" he nearly yelled, looking at the surrounding stores and comparing them with what was written on the map. He had received it anonymously through owl post, again trying and not succeeding in capturing the large bird. It was lucky for them that they were multilingual, as they had needed to know English for visiting London.

"Well, maybe it's supposed to be hidden! I mean, we've never even heard about these people before, so maybe this is why," the younger of the two provided, attempting to be optimistic yet failing miserably- he'd repeated that same phrase at least three times that day. He sighed once he noticed that it was having no effect on his brother.

They had been searching for a strange bar for at least six hours so far. Their map had come with a short letter also, saying that it would be the 'gateway to a whole new world'. Ed had snorted at that, calling the sender insane- but that was before the map was proved quite accurate. Now they just needed to find the tavern…

They walked along Litchfield Street, turning left onto Charing Cross Road in the hopes that somehow it would lead them to where they needed to be. The actual destination was marked in between Shelton Street and Mercer Street, but they couldn't find it, no matter how hard they searched. Obviously it had been wrong, so the brothers' only chance was to look around and hope that it would be somewhere.

Ed growled in frustration, adjusting his hat to fit better over his ears. Part of him wondered if this was just some cruel joke, meant to test his patience, which was about ready to abandon him. But another part, the calm side of him, said to wait a tiny bit longer and he would be rewarded.

_Well, that's a load of shit,_ he thought, glaring angrily at the stores. Old book shops, all of them. Zwemmer's, Murder One, Blackwell's, Borders, The Leaky Cauldron, Marks & Co….

Ed blinked, then started walking backwards. Yep, he read that correctly- The Leaky Cauldron. Strange name for a bookstore, but fitting for a tavern. Checking over his shoulder for Al, he entered.

It was dimly lit, yet easy to see all of the features in the small establishment. A stone fireplace sat along one wall, although no flames danced, considering the time of year. Near half of the dozen or so tables had customers sitting at them, drinking a mug of ale and talking with friends. There was a bald man behind the counter who, upon sighting the new guests, gave them a weary, toothless grin.

Thy approached him, and Alphonse asked, "Do you have any idea where to find a place called… um… Diagon Alley?" He hoped he had gotten the name right, as it had been a while since reading the letter.

Fortunately, though, it looked as if he had. "Lookin' to go to Hogwarts?" He received a nod. "Right then, step right this way," he said, beckoning to them as he walked out through a back door.

The small group was met by a weathered brick wall. As Ed was about to ask why they had come there, the old man drew a stick out from his pocket and tapped a pattern on certain blocks of the wall. They suddenly folded into themselves, creating an entrance to what looked like a busy center of commerce.

Ed and Al gaped at each other, speechless.

The innkeeper cleared his throat, bringing both alchemists to their senses. The two said their thanks, entering the Alley as the wall closed behind them.

They walked along the crowded road, gazing in awe at the interesting wares being advertised in store windows. However, this brought them to a dilemma.

"Is there a bank around here, brother? I don't think we have the right currency…" Al said, noticing golden coins being exchanged for a few small vials of liquid.

Ed paused before nodding in agreement. "There should be one- after all, if people like us come in through the Cauldron, they'd be going straight from Euros to… whatever it is that's used here," he finished lamely.

They walked in silence until coming upon an intersection. Looking up at a white marble building, Ed stared at it dumbly before saying, "I think we found the bank." Sure enough, large, golden letters named the building 'Gringott's Bank'.

* * *

Edward and Alphonse carried their heavy stacks of books with them, along with a few black robes, some kits of school supplies, two snowy owls, and a little puffball.

The menagerie had been a nightmare. There were birds of all kinds everywhere, making Ed close to insane with his appetite, and the fact that he hadn't eaten for a number of hours. The cats had infuriated him- apparently they had been showering him with insults and nasty comments, as Al learned from asking. All manner of rats and mice had also tempted the chimera to start feasting, but his brother had been able to prevent that, if just barely. The only creatures that Ed had a good reaction to were the Puffskeins, small custard-colored balls of fur with tails, and easy to take care of. Ed had enjoyed playing with the little thing, batting at it with his hands- he refused to call them paws- yet not harming it in the least. They bought it along with the owls that were required for school.

One stop was left: Ollivander's. The alchemists entered the 'wand shop', finding a thin old man managing the store. "Ah, welcome! I assume you are here to buy your wands?" he asked quietly.

"Yeah, whatever," Ed said, gazing wearily at the rows of shelving, all filled with dusty boxes. The man promptly took out a few tape measures from a drawer, started to measure along Ed's outstretched left arm, left the tape measures to do their job on their own, was completely oblivious to the boys' gawking at the display of magic, and returned with a few boxes of wands.

"Try this one," he offered, holding out a stick. "Nine inches, oak, phoenix feather core."

The result wasn't very pleasant.

Neither were the next twenty or so wands.

Ed was lucky he wasn't going to have to pay for repairs.

Eventually, Edward ended up with 'nine and a half inches, pine, chimera fur core,' and Alphonse received 'twelve inches, oak, sphinx fur core.'

They left the store wondering about the credibility of magic actually existing.


	9. The Hogwarts Express

**Chapter 9: The Hogwarts Express**

"Nine and three quarters… nine and three quarters… where the hell is platform nine and three quarters?!" Ed yelled in German, ready to go back and strangle Tom for this.

Al sighed, and not for the first time that day. The innkeeper had directed them on their path to Hogwarts, saying that a train would leave from platform nine and three quarters in a few days. So far, no luck. That seemed to be happening a lot recently…

Ed was still ranting. "They should at least put a sign over it! They've got some for all the other platforms, but what about the one we're looking for? No! They don't! It's not-… hey, what was that?"

His brother's sudden stopping caused Al's mind to return, and he looked in the direction Ed was pointing. He shook his head, not seeing anything out of the ordinary. "What was what, brother?"

"I swear I saw something over there!"

Another sigh. "There's nothing there. It's probably just a mouse or something."

Ed glared at he reference to his cat half, still not entirely comfortable with all the facts. "It was _not_ a mouse. It…" his voice died out as he looked back at the platforms. "What the…?"

Two boys were jogging, pushing their filled trolleys ahead of them. They wore twin grins, one in front of the other, both running at the brick wall in between platforms nine and ten. With no crashes, screams or shouts, both of them passed through the wall and out of sight, as if they had never even been at the station. Another red-haired boy followed them in the same fashion, and then a young girl that shared some of their features.

That left only a black-haired boy out of the group, starting to copy what the others had done.

Ed came to his senses, rushing at the boy before he could go through the wall. "Hey, wait!"

The kid looked up, slightly startled at the sight of a small blond teen skidding to a stop right in front of him. He himself stopped, curious of the newcomer.

"So, what's with that wall? More of this 'magic' or something?" Edward asked bluntly, wanting a straight answer to one of his questions for once. The boy nodded.

"Yeah, this is the passageway to the Hogwarts Express, platform nine and three quarters," he said. "The barrier closes at eleven o'clock, so we'd better hurry up." Ed nodded his agreement- they had only a few minutes left. He watched as the boy pushed his trolley through the wall, following with his own luggage a moment later, and then he was followed by Alphonse.

Ed was a bit shocked that he hadn't felt anything from walking through the wall, but that shock was replaced with an amazement that he had only felt when in Diagon Alley. Wizards and witches were in abundance, saying goodbye to their children for the year, loading luggage onto the train… the train itself was nearly as huge as the hidden place in which it was housed. It was scarlet, close to the shade of red of Ed's coat, in great condition, and working excellently. Hopefully it would be at least a bit more comfortable than the trains that he normally had to ride, as Ed's new furry appendage wouldn't feel very comfortable on wooden benches.

The whole place had a positive feel to it, and smelled that way, too. However, it was far too crowded for the young chimera, so he quickly raced after the boy he had been following. They walked onto the train, passing by a few filled compartments before coming across one that held only three people- though there were also a couple of others standing instead of sitting.

"Ah… I guess I'll get to talk to you two a bit later. I've got to go see my friends," the boy said, gesturing towards the compartment. "By the way, my name's Harry Potter." He held out his hand.

Ed reached out with his own and shook it, gripping lightly to try and hide the presence of his automail. "I'm Ed Elric, and this is my brother, Al."

The taller of the two smiled, also reaching forward to shake Harry's hand. "Nice to meet you."

Harry smiled, genuinely glad that these new acquaintances weren't going on asking about his scar. "You too," he replied. "Well, see you at Hogwarts." With that, he entered the compartment and left the alchemists to themselves.

They wandered along the length of the train, eventually coming to a compartment that was completely empty. They were its only occupants for a while, although eventually an annoying platinum-haired blond walked in, insulting Ed's height and starting a lifelong conflict with the 'midget'. He barely escaped without injury.

There were no more interruptions after that, and the train glided smoothly across the tracks as it had done so for the rest of the trip, lulling Ed into a peaceful catnap. Al chuckled, from his spot on the other seat, at his brother's curled up position and reached over to pet his brother's hair in a comforting fashion, chuckling again at the soft purr Ed made at the back of his throat.

"It must be so hard for you brother, to act more human than you feel," Al whispered quietly to himself, and he saw the ears that had sprung up from Ed's relaxed posture had twitched. Al scrambled back to his seat just as Ed's eyes blinked open.

"You say something Al?" Ed questioned his younger brother, who was reading the book he had closed before touching his brother's hair.

Al kept his face buried in the book in his hands- third year transfiguration. "Nope, I didn't say anything, Brother," the taller of the two answered, face hidden from the searching golden eyes of Ed. Ed shrugged, passed it off as just his mind playing tricks on him, and stretched his arms, hearing the left one pop.

As soon as the train came to a stop at Hogwarts, the students started filing off. Edward and Alphonse weren't so sure about what to do, and so began a search for the one person they knew.

It was a difficult task, as everyone was wearing the same black robes (even the brothers, because Alphonse had insisted that they would stand out too much if they didn't), yet they succeeded in the end.

"Hey, Harry!" Ed said, coming upon the group. He was met with a few hellos in response.

"Oh, hello. So you've got a couple new friends, Harry?" asked a bushy-haired girl, glancing at said wizard. Without waiting for an answer, she continued with introductions. "Anyway, I'm Hermione Granger, and these are my friends, Ron Weasley, Neville Longbottom, and Loony-Luna Lovegood." Though she tried to hide her mistake on the last name, it was a poor attempt, and the Elrics caught it easily.

"I'm Ed Elric, and this is Al, my _younger_ brother," Edward said, stressing the 'younger' to get his point across.

After introduction, a carriage came. Ed found it hard to say anything after spotting the creatures pulling it, skeletal horses that looked like failed chimera experiments. He didn't need to hear Al's quiet gasp to know that his brother was thinking the same thing as he was.

It was Harry who finally said something about the creatures. "What… what are those things?" he asked, elaborating once he saw the confused expressions sent his way. "What are the things pulling the carriages?"

Hermione was the one to reply, saying, "Harry, nothing's pulling it."

It was Luna who tried to console him as they climbed into the seats. "I can see them too. Don't worry, you're just as sane as I am."

Somehow, that thought wasn't a very comforting one to the three others who could see the horse-like beasts.

Several times during the ride up towards their destination, Ed couldn't keep his curious eyes off of what he thought to be failed Chimera experiments, no matter how horrifying they were.

Al caught his attention, "Brother, if you keep staring at those things, they might think something of it," the younger Elric said in German, keeping the others out of their conversation, even though he was speaking quietly.

"I can't help it. You know me at this moment in time and I damn well can't help it!" Ed whispered hoarsely (in German) back at Al. "As they say, curiosity killed the cat," Ed quoted, and waited as patiently as a human hybrid could wait. As they came to a shaky halt in front of the grand castle structure, Ed and Al were the first to get out; Ed wanting to run and hide on top of a tree from the skeletal horses and Al to chase after the other.


	10. The Sorting

**Chapter 10: The Sorting**

They began their short trek up to the school, leaving the strange creatures and the carriages as they joined a large crowd of returning students. The amount of witches and wizards was surprising, yet not too unexpected in such an area. Edward followed closely behind his brother, beginning to feel claustrophobic within such a crowded mass of people. He wanted to hiss, and did so, albeit quietly. Living in conditions like this would drive him mad, he concluded, making darting glances around him to try and find a more open section.

He was saved from this predicament by a voice; someone called to him from the edge of the group, and he was all too ready to take that escape route. Winding his way through everyone, Alphonse doing his best to keep up, he found the one who had yelled his name. She was an elderly woman, wearing a tall black hat and a velvet green cloak over her robes. Her black hair was pulled into a tight bun, adding to the strict look held on her face, which was adorned with a pair of square glasses. Overall, she appeared to be the type of person whom Ed would have difficulty sneaking past in places where he shouldn't be.

She peered down at him past her spectacles "Edward Elric, I presume?" she asked, and at his nod, she then asked the other's identity. "Alphonse?" Another affirmative shake of the head. She herself nodded, and then motioned for the two to follow. "Come with me. Special arrangements have been made for you, and it would do good to get you into your correct places here at Hogwarts. I am sure you will fit in. Are there any problems you wish to discuss before we enter?" They had reached the school's entryway.

Ed shifted uncomfortably, thinking of both his cat features and metal limbs. They would all cause him problems here, but would the gain outweigh the risk? He calculated subconsciously in his head before remembering where he was. "No, there's nothing," he said, still distracted. The old lady looked at him oddly, but then shrugged, turning around to face the grand entrance.

She beckoned to them, talking as she walked. "I am professor Minerva McGonagall; you will be learning the subject of Transfiguration in my class. Now, as all of the first year students are only eleven years old, you will not be joining them. Instead, you shall attend classes with students in your age group. However, after classes each day, you will be expected to take special lessons in magic, as you have not been here for the last four years. Ah, here we are." They had arrived at a gigantic pair of doors, and the two alchemists stood back in the crowd of other new students as McGonagall began her small speech, preparing them to be 'Sorted into their Houses' and warning them to 'be on their best behavior.' Ed ignored this, instead thinking over what he had learned about his new teacher. She was interesting enough, and, from what he could gather, certainly lived up to her first name. He was still analyzing her in his head when the great doors opened into the largest single room he had ever seen.

Ed stared in aweat the cavernous ceiling, candles floating just underneath the cloudy night sky. There were also large torches lining the walls, their flames jumping around wildly in place. Lowering his eyes, he saw four long tables, already filled with returning students- and plenty of chatter. Another table stood at the very end of the hall, teachers seated along it. Two spots were empty- one next to an old man who sported a ridiculously long beard, and one to the left end of the table.

There was a tap on his back, and he stared up at his brother's face, taking a moment before getting the hint. He walked again with the first years, still taking in the sights of the Great Hall. Eventually, they stopped, and McGonagall stood next to a stool that had a scruffy-looking hat sitting on it. She picked up a list from on the teacher's table, and began calling out names.

"Abercrombie, Euan."

A small boy with prominent ears walked timidly up to McGonagall, sitting down on the stool tentatively as she placed the hat on his head. There were a few moments of silence, and then:

"GRIFFYNDOR!"

Ed fell back, bumping into Al as he did so. He was shocked… no, it must be fake, his mind screamed at him. But nothing else could explain what was going on. The hat… it had talked. It was a sentient being… when it should have been merely something for someone to wear on their head. There was a small pain in his heart as he was reminded of how his own brother had been not three months ago… a real soul stuck inside of an inanimate object.

"Bletchley, Miles." Another student walked up, all attention on him.

The hat yet again took a moment in deciding, though this one was evidently much easier and quicker to sort. It yelled out, "SLYTHERIN!" The boy walked over to the enthusiastic table, obviously belonging to the Slytherins.

Many more names were called out, and they were all sorted into four different Houses: Gryffindor, Slytherin, Hufflepuff, and Ravenclaw. The only ones left standing were Edward and Alphonse; they fidgeted nervously as all eyes fell on them.

Minerva McGonagall cleared her throat before speaking again. "Along with our first year students, we would like to introduce two foreign exchange students from Germany,"—of which the Elrics had never even heard of before, but decided to go along with the story anyway—"who will be joining you in the fourth and fifth year classes, respectively. Elric, Alphonse," she called, barely glancing at the paper before saying his name.

The younger of the two gulped, face going pale from all the attention. He walked on shaky legs the path that the others had taken, also sitting down on the stool that they had. What he wasn't expecting was the voice that began to speak right next to his ear, and he nearly yelped out in surprise. But he contained it, instead listening to the hat's words.

"My, we've a smart one here!" it cackled, finding that it would have the first challenge in years in sorting a new student. I haven't had any of those since that Potter boy, it mused, reminiscing that eventful day. "Quite the natural genius, eh? And all this knowledge… on alchemy nonetheless! Amazing… simply stunning, the amount that you know. You would fit perfectly into Ravenclaw… eh? What's this?" The hat was, for the first time in its existence, shocked beyond belief. Not just at the powerful transmutation in the young blonde's memory, but at what would drive him to do what he had done, and all of what he had gone through since then. To be stuck in something, like that suit of armor, would bring a terribly horrifying life, if it could even deserve to be called that. The hat pulled itself from its train of thought, not liking where it was going, and returned to inspecting Alphonse's mind.

"Very brave to have gone through such ordeals… and yet, still loyal throughout everything, never faltering to help those whom you trust." Let's see how this turns out. "I say you'd be good in…"

"HUFFLEPUFF!"

The Hall cheered, Hufflepuffs greeting their new addition warmly, and Slytherins clapping halfheartedly. Al sighed in relief and the color returned to his face as he hurried down to his new House. They didn't look at all bad, and if the hat was to be trusted, their personalities would be at least a little bit the same, their values even more. He sat down next to a muscular boy who looked to be about his age.

"Elric, Edward."

The Great Hall fell silent once more, every student curious about the other newcomer. He was short; that was the first word they would use to describe him, next to golden. His hair was a shining mass of molten gold, the color reflected in his catlike eyes. In fact, all of him looked a bit like… a cat. He even moved like one! None of them knew how close they were to the truth with that; however, such enhanced looks would never repel any of the girls in the school.

Edward sat down cautiously, wary of what the hat would do. After seeing Al's pale face and unsure expression, he had become a tiny bit scared of the thing—though he would never admit it—and more than a bit curious.

Damn this 'curious cat' thing, he cursed mentally, grimacing at the thought of living like that for the rest of his life.

The hat was placed on his head, and shocked him in the same fashion as it had his brother. "Interesting, interesting," it murmured, shifting through Ed's memories. "Much the same as the other, but… ah, a curious twist in that event, I see." It had come across Edward's memory of the failed human transmutation, and now saw the events through his eyes. What sadness they hold in their pasts. "Cunning and smart; a wonderful candidate for Ravenclaw, or perhaps Slytherin. You would do perfectly with them, wouldn't you?" The question was rhetorical, as he would fit nicely in with them. The only problem was his fierce attitude, and… "A chimera? My, my, never had one of those before, have we? Yet another interesting turn of events. Now, where to put you?" Ed anxiously waited for the hat's decision, hardly noticing the reference to his cat features, which were twitching underneath the hat and around his waist, where his tail was wrapped to better ensure that it stayed put.

"GRYFFINDOR!" it yelled, startling the Hall with its sudden outburst.

Three of the four tables erupted in a thunderous cheer, one in particular making more noise than the others. The Gryffindor House was a close group, and very spirited, greeting their new addition with much vigor. Edward smiled, though whether he was actually happy or just putting on a mask was impossible to determine. He sat himself down next to someone he actually knew; Ron Weasley, he remembered. Across from them sat Hermione and Harry, all of them beaming at getting one of the new exchange students.

Suddenly, at a few words from one 'Albus Dumbledore,' food appeared on the table. No transmutation circles had been used or anything—the alchemists were bewildered; they had believed they couldn't be surprised by anything anymore, yet that hypothesis had turned out to be wrong. Ed half-turned in his seat to face Al, who was at the table next to the wall (and, on the other side, next to the Gryffindor table), and gave him a lopsided grin before turning back to dig in to his food with as much vigor as he usually did. What do you expect of him? He hadn't eaten since breakfast, and he had fallen asleep on the train so he missed the food trolley.

At the teen's rapid eating pace, Ron and Harry watched in amazement, while their female friend merely scowled in distaste. A couple of times, Edward nearly forgot himself and had started to let his furry ears rise up, but each time that had happened, Al poked him sharply in the back. A few students giggled while others watched in curiosity, wondering at why he would be doing that. About halfway through the feast, the headmaster stood from his seat and the Hall became silent in an instant.

"Well, now that we are all digesting another magnificent feast, I beg a few moments of your attention for the usual start-of-term notices," Dumbledore said. "First years ought to know that the forest in the grounds is out of bounds to students, and a few of our oldest students ought to know by now too." Ron, Harry, and Hermione looked at each other with a knowing glance, bringing out Ed's curiosity once more.

"Mr. Filch, the caretaker, has asked me to remind you that…" Dumbledore's speech was cut off as a not-so-quiet 'hem, hem' was heard from a woman at one end of the table. He hesitated a moment before turning to her. "You wanted to say something, Dolores?"

"Thank you, Headmaster," Professor Umbridge said, "for your kind words of welcome. I am very much looking forward to getting to know you all, and I'm sure we'll be good friends!" She paused for a moment and made another 'hem, hem' noise. "The Ministry of Magic has always considered the education of young witches and wizards to be of vital importance. The rare gifts with which you were born may come to nothing if not nurtured and honed by careful instruction. The ancient skills unique to the Wizarding community must be passed down through the generations lest we lose them forever. The treasure trove of magical knowledge amassed by our ancestors must be guarded, replenished, and polished by those who have been called to the noble profession of teaching."

There was some whispering going on at the tables, and Edward caught a snitch of conversation from the three friends at his table. Something about the Ministry interfering… I'll have to look into this 'Ministry of Magic' a bit more, then, he thought, his own head sitting in the palm of his right hand, cold metal, through white gloves, meeting his warm face, as he put up a front of sheer boredom.

Dumbledore stood up again to address the students. "Thank you, Dolores, for your greeting. On to other matters, then! Along with the exchange students from Germany, I would like to announce three changes in staffing this year." Everyone leaned forward in their seats at this; they knew there would be a new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, but two others? The year was going to be interesting, for sure.

"We have your new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor, whom has already greeted you: Professor Dolores Umbridge. Professor Wilhelmina Grubbly-Plank will be your Care of Magical Creatures professor until Hagrid returns to the grounds." There was much talk started by this comment. "And, finally, we would like to introduce you to a teacher who shall be teaching a new subject this year: alchemy." Two specific alchemists straightened their backs, surprised and uncertain at this arrangement. "Unfortunately, he has not shown yet, and so he will be introduced when…" The headmaster looked up as a disturbance was made.

The doors to the Great Hall opened widely, and all whispering ceased to be as young witches and wizards craned their necks to see who had come in. Edward and Alphonse were among them, until they caught sight of him; then, they froze in place.

Albus Dumbledore smiled, a mischievous twinkle in his eyes. "As I was saying… please welcome our new alchemy teacher, Professor Roy Mustang." At that moment, a loud 'thunk' was heard and some people saw that Edward Elric had let his head it the table, muttering something like 'bastard Taisa' or other.


	11. The First Day, Part I

**Chapter 11: The First Day, Part I**

_**-Night of Wednesday, September First-**_

No one ever asked about Ed's strange reaction to Professor Mustang; they merely thought that someone had pushed his head into the table. More than a few blamed the Weasley twins, who were well known for pulling pranks on anyone in the school, Gryffindor or not. A few others pointed fingers at the Slytherins, claiming "I thought I saw something funny in his eye," or that "she had her wand out, I swear!" None of those people knew anything about Edward Elric, though.

Said new student sighed, slightly irritated at how much people were exaggerating on their fantastical stories of deceit and betrayal. It was simply amazing, how these teens could warp the facts to fit their twisted imaginations, spreading it as gossip and, then, those warped, twisted facts would be altered yet again and gossiped about to someone else. Amazing, and irritating. Idly, Ed wondered if they had ever heard of some sort of wonderful, magical charm called 'shut up.' He wished he could ask them, but sadly, Alphonse would come by and 're-prime' him, as he says. More like beat his skull in with just his fist!

He was not the only one being talked about. Hiding behind the closed drapery of his bed, he tuned into a conversation that had recently transitioned to an argument between two of the people in his year: the ever-present Harry Potter, and the newly acquainted Seamus Finnigan.

"She believes the Daily Prophet? She thinks I'm a liar and Dumbledore's an old fool?"

Well, some of this gossip could be informative.

"Yeah, something like that," Seamus replied, his Irish accented voice nearly accusatory.

Or build tension.

Ed heard the sound of wood smacking wood—someone's thrown wand, he guessed—and heard a rustle of cloth as Harry began changing into his pajamas. There was also a feeling of animosity in the air… or was it a scent? Ed couldn't tell anymore, as his mind was too befuddled with drowsiness.

He shook his head slowly, dislodging the thoughts that had sent him back to that night, five weeks ago. Or had it only been four? His internal clock had been put out of wacksince being merged with that cat—a cat, of all creatures!—along with all of his other senses. Everything had become so confusing, and the addition of magic had not helped the poor chimera at all. Magic? The idea was preposterous! Yet here he was, at a magical school, in a magical place that was filled with magical people with all of this magical mumbo jumbo.

The absurdity of it all made him want to cryand he almost did, but the thought of the Colonel's arrogant, cocky (yet handsome—wait, what?! It's all the cat's fault… yeah…) face brought him to grip his hands in frustration.

As his sudden depression dragged him down into the blissful nothingness of sleep, the voices were raised again. He caught on to one word during the whole of his descent, and, though it was spoken with an angry tone, thought of only that one perfect word as he slipped into darkness.

How wonderful it would be to have a mother.

Xxxxx

_**-Monday Morning, September Second-**_

Edward woke sleepily the next morning, languidly stretching his limbs as warm sunlight spilled over his curled form, ears relaxing atop his head and tail flickering to and fro in contentment. A low rumble began in his throat: the sign of a truly happy cat. He nuzzled his soft, feathery pillow, purring loudly as he basked in the warmth. Nothing could ruin such a nice moment.

Or so he thought.

He yelped as a high-pitched screeching noise rang violently in his sensitive ears, jolting up in his bed and leaping out in terror. Ears twitching, his head shook frantically as he searched for whatever it was that had startled him. It was going to pay, oh yes, and it was going to pay dearly!

And it did.

Let's just say that alarm clocks never did like automail, and for good reason.

Ed smirked triumphantly down at the pile of broken metal and gears, satisfied that he had removed such a pest. It had paid full price for its actions, and would never come back to haunt him!

Another part of his mind tried to tell him something, but he swatted it away. Why would he allow anything to interrupt him, in all his feline glory?

A knock sounded at the door, making him jump as his mind returned to the present. Coming to his senses, he quickly glanced around to check for his roommates, sighing in relief as he discovered that they had already left for breakfast. Which reminded him that he should go eat, too. Besides, classes would be starting in—

Ten minutes.

_Shit._

Hastily standing up and fixing his appearance, Ed threw on his robe over his nightclothes, stepping into his heavy black boots at the same time. He had just started braiding his hair when the door opened and a presence was felt behind him.

Ed tensed up on impulse, slowly turning around, hoping that it was one of his roommates come to collect their forgotten wand. His nose told him otherwise—damn those cat senses!—and his hopes were crushed as he came face to face; or, rather, face to chest; and it was a nice-looking chest, too, strong yet lean and soft-like, beneath the folds of a long midnight-colored robe that smelled nice, like it had just been washed. Not to mention the other, more wonderful scent emanating from it. It was familiar, but in what way?

Thoughts were becoming difficult to comprehend as the remnants of the catnip completely intoxicated the young hybrid. His heavy eyelids slid down to cover the unfocused golden orbs beneath, these features highlighted by the red flush that had risen to his cheeks. His breathing became ragged, his legs weak, and he hardly noticed when his head crashed into the stone floor, the room echoing with the sound of a loud '_crack!'_

The last thing he noticed was the frantic yet hushed voice of whoever it was that had entered the room.

_At least they smell good,_ he thought, unconsciously inhaling the addicting scent as he was carried away at a hurried pace.

Xxxxx

Alphonse Elric had a very different, more enjoyable morning. His cat, which he had named Bella, awoke him with a kind, well-meaning claw to the face. Al had then proceeded to wake up the rest of his dorm with a yelp and a nasty curse—not the magical kind, and most definitely not in the English language. A few had returned to sleep, but most of them decided to rise and enjoy the extra two hours of freedom before classes began.

After sheepishly apologizing for waking everyone, the alchemist grabbed a few first-year books—he did have to make up for the time he wasn't here, after all—and headed out through the underground tunnel to the common room, settling himself into one of the plush black-and-yellow armchairs, followed by his cat, who jumped onto his lap and curled up there.

He smiled sadly as he gazed down at her velvety black fur, thinking again of his brother. They looked somewhat the same, acted the same, even walked the same! All the things that this cat had always lived with had just been pushed upon his brother, making them at least halfway the same species. It was a miracle Ed hadn't broken down yet.

Al thought again of the cat, and not his brother. Cats had been in abundance at the Magical Menagerie, but, being respectful of his brother, hadn't asked even once if he could get one for a pet. There would definitely have been some conflicting emotions if he had; so many that he didn't want to ponder it any more. However, the cat had followed him since after dinner the last night, so he might as well take care of it.

Clearing his mind, the young alchemist grabbed the top book and immersed himself in its contents, leaving for breakfast at about eight thirty with the rest of his House.


	12. The First Day, Part II: Revealed Thought

**Chapter 12: The First Day, Part II**

Trudging along the hallways while still buried in one of his books, Al yawned and glanced around the pages at the gray stone walls. It was an amazing place, but why couldn't all the walls be decorated with portraits? It certainly was odd that all the people in the paintings were sleeping. Perhaps it was a popular sort of art style in Scotland?

Shaking his head with a quiet chuckle, the alchemist started to turn back to his book, but not before he caught a glimpse of a black-robed figure carrying another one. The thing that gave him pause was the fact that the second one had golden hair.

Momentarily forgetting about breakfast, Al broke off from the group and rushed towards the figure, who turned his charcoal eyes on him.

"What happened?" asked the youngest Elric worriedly, checking over his brother to see that he was okay. No bruises, cuts, scratches, pieces of extra metal…

Roy put on a sympathetic expression. "I walked in to his dorm to get him, but he… got a little dizzy. I don't know what it could be from," he said, shaking his head.

Alphonse peered at the man suspiciously, plucking at his thick robes. "Colonel," he began, only to correct himself. "Er, Professor, sir. Is that catnip I can smell on you?" The colonel blinked in surprise as realization dawned on him.

"Yes, unfortunately. I was discussing Severus' potion with him, and catnip happens to be one of the ingredients. I apologize for that." He looked down at the small bundle in his arms, and began walking again. "He needs to get to the hospital wing quickly, though. When he fell, I heard his skull crack. But he'll be fine," Roy amended quickly, seeing Al's face go from worried to devastated.

They finished their hurried walk in silence, dropping Ed off in Madame Pomfrey's care. They would have stayed, but Roy had classes to attend to and Al wouldn't look good if he missed the first day of classes. With a resigned sigh, they both left for the dining hall, promising to return once the day was over.

* * *

His head hurt, ached beyond what he could ever remember. Not that he could remember much, at the moment… just a nice scent and a nice-looking person. Didn't they have black eyes? Pretty black eyes, of course. Pretty, shining black eyes. He wanted to keep them with him for a long time.

Another part of him said 'no,' but he couldn't understand that. Why 'no?' They were pretty, and the person was nice. Wasn't that a good enough reason to keep them?

He received no answer, instead falling back into a deep slumber.

* * *

Al sat by his brother's bedside, concerned that he was still unconscious. He shouldn't still be like that, right? He should've been fine by now, up and yelling that he was not short, not a cat, and did not like the colonel.

He gave a wry smile at that last one. Of course Ed didn't like the colonel, but what did everyone else think? That he hated him? Quite the contrary, if Ed's own words were true.

And, they had been proven to be true a few years ago.

Al could remember his brother talking in his sleep after he had been accepted into the military, often mentioning the name 'Roy.' At first he had concluded that he was arguing with the colonel, but after a few weeks, Ed had begun to say a few more… interesting… phrases. There were no doubts to how he viewed the colonel, and those that had threatened to surface had been crushed after a talk with his brother.

Ed had been a bit embarrassed at first, but he had become more confident once Al had clearly stated that he had no problems with his brother's interest. He had still been a bit hesitant; it was even worse around Mustang. Al could easily see Ed's nervousness behind the 'anger,' and it didn't look as if it did him any good at all. Keeping it hidden like that wouldn't help anyone.

At a rustle from the sheets, Al was brought back to the present. He leaned over, hope shining in his eyes, as Ed's ears twitched and his head shifted. After a minute or two of no movement, Al sank back down into his chair. So much for that hope.

Madame Pomfrey noticed the gloomy teen and shooed him out of the room, telling him to find his dorm before any of the professors found him. Checking his watch- 8:35- he did as he was told without any questions.

None of his friends asked about him, merely watching him walk past, collapsing on his bed. Tonight, as he had done every night, he would be thinking about his brother. That he had been completely out of it for three whole days was more than expected, especially with Madame Pomfrey's magical care. It was a heavy burden on Alphonse and, in turn, on them. None of the Hufflepuffs knew him very well, but they wanted to be his friends. If he would speak a bit more…

Al tuned out of their conversations, instead favoring the silence of sleep.


	13. Alchemy

**Chapter 13: Alchemy**

Thursday morning was beautiful: bright rays of sunlight burst in through the windows, creating a warm atmosphere within the magic school. Students both wide awake and half asleep walked through the halls to their classes, many of them chatting amiably with their friends. The clatter of steps across stone floors and voices echoing off the walls should have been much louder, yet the sound was muted so as to allow people to hear talk amongst themselves, while still giving them privacy in that there was lots of noise regardless of the quieted chatter.

There weren't many subjects to add to any conversation, yet there were enough wild rumors and unverified facts flying around to make one's head spin. Most knew little enough of the truth; those that had any actual information usually didn't know it, but those that did kept that information close to themselves, not giving away the slightest hint of what may have happened lest it be discovered and someone fall in trouble. The main point of conversation? One Edward Elric, German transfer student.

"Did you hear? They're saying he was kidnapped! Someone must've snuck into the room and taken him. Blimey, imagine if it had been one of us!" Ron, the redhead of a certain trio, was retelling in haunted tones one of such rumors that had been spread.

Hermione was of a different mindset, arguing against all of the Weasley's reasoning. "Obviously he wasn't! You saw him in the hospital wing, he can't have been anywhere else! Honestly, Ron, use some logic sometimes."

He came back with a ready response, saying, "Well, he had to get there somehow. I mean, maybe he was kidnapped and then they found the guy? It can't have been that difficult." His tone of voice was slightly doubtful despite all that he said in his defense, and Hermione gave a barely perceptible smirk of triumph.

She was about to say something more but they had arrived at the alchemy classroom's entrance by then which was, strangely, already open. Students had begun to file in anyway, choosing seats and plopping down their supplies on the desks. It was the first time they had ever been in that room, and class; everyone took a moment to absorb their new surroundings.

It was set up with a small desk at the head of the room, off to the left side when you looked at it from the trio's current point of view. Black tables—the same as chalkboards when you got close enough to realize it—were set in two rows of three, with an aisleway to walk through set between the rows, and each table could seat four people. A small basket of chalk was in the center of each of the tables, but this only served to confuse everyone in the classroom. The walls were similar to the desks, made of chalkboards and with sticks of chalk sitting beneath them.

Hermione, Ron, and Harry sat next to each other, and the rest of the students followed suit, sticking to their friends and starting to talk yet again about interesting rumors and the handsome new professor. He was most certainly the best thing to happen to the school since Lockhart, and definitely cuter by far, claimed a small collection of girls both Slytherin and Gryffindor. Ron looked cautiously at Hermione, trying to mentally discourage her from joining that group's mindset, but with no way of knowing whether he was succeeding or not. Harry, however, was more concerned about the other House; he gave a wary glance, disheartened that they would be in the same class as the Gryffindors. Hopefully the professor wasn't as biased towards them as Snape was…

Speaking of the professor, the raven-haired man chose that moment to enter, waltzing up to the front chalkboard with an air of confidence that made even Hermione swoon (which caused Ron to have an immediate dislike for him, remembering what had happened in their second year). He picked up one of the many pieces of compressed powder and began to write.

The thing that shocked all of the students was the person who walked in next. Messy-haired and looking quite tired and hungry, the golden-eyed student shuffled in and took a spot next to Harry, who looked bewildered to see his friend ready to take classes. The young Major attempted a small smile at the wizard, eyes looking elsewhere the whole time. It was then that the man at the front spoke.

"Welcome to your first class of alchemy. I will start by explaining the basics and necessary rules, along with all of the natural scientific rules, as I am sure many of you have not learned any of these." He stepped aside from the board to reveal what he had written in, amazingly, only the minute in which the students had been watching him. The board was filled with white words. "The first thing I would like to stress is—"

He was interrupted by a drawling voice from the side on which the Slytherins had decided to gather. "Sir, with all due respect," it sounded as if the boy was being sarcastic there, as no respect was evident in his voice, "why must we learn anything about science? We have magic, so learning something petty muggles came up with is pretty useless to us. I don't even see why it's mandatory." At those few sentences Edward tensed up, eyes narrowing dangerously with a feral glint in them. Harry was a bit alarmed at this, but the mere act of putting his hand on his friend's shoulder was enough to calm down the miniature alchemist.

Mustang took no notice of this and glared at the boy who had spoken: Draco Malfoy, a kid with the same hair and annoying use of words as his father. Oh yes, his father. Lucius and Roy had met years ago when the elder had come in for a meeting with Snape while Roy had been in his last year at the school. Roy had spoken a little bit with the man at the time in the Slytherin common room, at first thinking him an idol to be awed (as he had thought for years) but soon thinking of him as no better than most others in the House. Not that such was unexpected, as its members were known for their cunning and deceit. Nevertheless, Roy and Lucius hadn't met since.

The man gave a cough. "This science may become important to you at some point in the future or it may not. What you decide to do with it is, entirely, up to you. Now, as I as saying before Mister Malfoy's oh-so-rude interruption- detention after classes in here, by the way, for the next three days, and ten points from your House- the first thing I would like to stress is to never, and I repeat never, perform any kind of alchemy you have not been instructed in. Doing so can prove to be fatal, as I myself have seen on plenty of occasions. If I find any of you using it… the punishment shall be severe. I cannot put enough stress on how important this is." He paused for a moment with a serious expression, then suddenly gave his customary smirk. "Now that that rule has been put into place, we can begin discussing the scientific aspects of alchemy."

Professor Mustang continued on with his speech, starting out with talking about deconstruction and reconstruction or something like that- in Harry's opinion, he was nearly as boring as Binns; at least the subject was a bit interesting. He only half-listened to what the professor was saying; he'd be able to read Hermione's notes later. Instead, his mind wandered to the matter of the boy beside him. Edward was gazing at the man with a face as bored as Harry was feeling, but with a hint of interest in his eyes; but at what, he couldn't even begin to guess. The blond looked worn out, as if he had been up all night; bags hung heavy and dark under his eyes, and his hair looked unbrushed and dirty. He pulled out his alchemy book and flipped through the pages, expression never changing even as detailed drawings were passed by in the text. There was something else about him that put Harry on edge… before he could ponder more on the subject, the rest of the class turned to face him, startling the black-haired boy.

"Mister Potter, did you hear what I just said or must I repeat myself?" The accented voice taunted him and he felt slightly ashamed of himself.

"Sorry sir, I… I didn't hear your question, sir," he replied, uncomfortably aware of everyone looking at him. Ignoring them, he focused his gaze on the man at the front. An annoying smirk found its target and only served to aggravate the young wizard and make him shift slightly.

"Well then, we'll have to work on your listening skills a bit. Unless you would like to show us your extraordinary alchemic skills, I suggest you start paying attention in class. Five points from Gryffindor, and detention after classes today." Harry winced; the man was pretty harsh on his punishments. Not to mention his current detention with Umbridge… "I guess that since you haven't been listening, you wouldn't know the first law of alchemy, Equivalent Exchange, would you? No? Would it be that anyone else can tell me what it is, based off of what I have already told you?"

Predictably, Hermione raised her hand, causing a couple whispers from the Slytherin side of the room; the know-it-all was back at it again. After running his eyes over the rest of the students, Mustang sighed and called on her. "Equivalent Exchange would be exactly the same as the Law of Conservation of Mass, which states that for any chemical process in a closed system, the mass of the reactants must equal the mass of the products. So, anything you transmute would be exactly the same amount of mass and be made of exactly the same materials, just in a different form."

Mustang quirked an eyebrow at her exact recitation of the muggle law, as it was rare to find anyone in the magic world who knew the tiniest bit about science. "Very good, Miss Granger. Ten points to Gryffindor," he said, restraining himself from making a smart remark about her comment. He was getting too used to being with Fullmetal, insulting him at every turn…

He checked his watch quickly, noticing that it was time to leave. "Class dismissed. Mister Malfoy, Mister Potter, don't forget your detentions this evening. Ah, yes, Mister Elric," he said suddenly, remembering something. "Please stay with me for the duration of this break; I need to speak to you about something."

Resigning himself to his fate, Edward dropped his books back down onto a desk and sat back down, glaring half-heartedly at his longtime crush.


	14. Hints

**Chapter Fourteen: Hints**

Harry and the rest of the alchemy class filed out of the room, glancing back as a frustrated Ed sat at a table and the professor came to close the door. It wasn't often you saw anyone held back in class for anything. It would probably be bad news, as the Elric had missed out on a few days already—and the year had just begun.

Speaking of which, why had he been in the hospital wing for such a long time? Any injuries and illnesses would have been healed or cured within an hour. Perhaps the blond was hit by a spell with lasting effects? Harry dismissed that idea immediately; a curse like that would be far too powerful to be used by anyone in the castle—other than a teacher.

Ron bumped into his friend as the black-haired teen stopped; his "What's wrong, mate?" received no answer as Harry resumed a steady, shaky pace through the hallways. It made sense! If Mustang had placed a spell on Edward and discovered that it had worn off, then he would have to renew it. Unless he decided to cast a new one…

"Harry… Harry… Harry!" Blinking, said wizard turned to his left and noticed a concerned expression on Hermione's face. "What's the matter? You seem worried for some reason… is it about Edward?"

Harry shook his head slowly, still wondering about his new friend's injuries. He was about to resume walking without an answer when Ron gripped his shoulder. "Come on, Harry. We're your friends, aren't we?"

A resigned sigh let them know of their victory, and the shoulder was released as they all tacitly agreed to continue walking. "Well…" Harry started awkwardly, "it's about Ed. Why was he in the hospital wing for so long? Why'd the professor keep him after class? Why—"

"Shouldn't you be worrying a bit about yourself, too?" interrupted Hermione. "I mean, you've got a detention with Umbridge _and_ Mustang! How are you going to work that out? Umbridge won't stand for it, and Mustang doesn't seem too forgiving… you've got to pick one over the other. Frankly, I'd try asking Mustang to make up the detention some other time; he's not that great, but might be a bit nicer. Then again…" The witch started to ramble a bit, chattering on and on about which teacher's detention the poor teen should accept. It annoyed him a bit more than it usually would, but he stayed silent, putting as much effort as he could into tuning out her speech.

Hermione kept on talking, glad that she had succeeded in taking her friend's mind off of Ed. There was something off about that guy… something she didn't recognize. It would be better if they didn't question anything about him. She had a feeling that if they did, they'd find out something they never wanted to know.

* * *

Edward glared at Roy as the man walked back to him, finally allowing his stiff ears to rise from their uncomfortable position. Keeping them hidden like that was much more difficult than it looked—it started to hurt after just ten minutes! Damn rules, banning hats from the castle… they would've made his life a whole lot easier at the moment, that was for sure.

But he had a different problem now: Roy wanted to talk to him. But about what? As Roy began walking towards the chimera, thoughts rushed through his mind, which was still a bit hazy from the few days he had been comatose. _Is this about the incident that left me in there in the first place? Or did Winry start to wonder where I'd taken her precious automail? Is Al worried? Scratch that, of course he is! But what does Roy… does he know? Is that it? Damn, I'm in trouble if that's the case! But how would he know? …If I said anything while asleep… shit…_

Keeping his outward appearance as calm as he could, the prodigy tilted an ear to the side as Roy pulled over a chair and sat across from him. Looking over his elder's shoulder at a stone wall to prevent himself from staring at the (admittedly, cute) man, Ed waited for him to start talking.

"Looks like you're going to be missing a few of your classes today, Edward." The blonde's eyes snapped to his superior's at the mention of his first name, and his heart rate raised a fraction. Golden eyes peered inquiringly into ones of onyx, encouraging an explanation. The unspoken request was obliged. "You know next to nothing about magic, Fullmetal. How do you think you'll survive your daily classes if you wander around in ignorance?" A frown tugged at Ed's lips from the reference to his military codename, but a fire lit in his eyes. Was this a challenge? "So, until you get the hang of using it, I'll be teaching you how to cast spells and brew potions."

Edward's breath caught in his throat. Roy, teach him magic? But how? He was an alchemist and a military man. What could he possibly know about magic?

Taking note of the teen's shocked expression, the colonel drew out a foot-long stick, made of a dark wood and with an elaborate handle. Realization dawned on the blonde's face and he mentally smacked himself for being such an idiot. Roy owned a wand! So THAT was the thing he had thrown back at the man's house… he had forgotten about that occurrence quickly. He should've at least remembered it after seeing the shop called Ollivander's. But… "How?" he whispered.

"I'm a wizard, obviously. Does it surprise you that much? I came to Hogwarts long before I joined the military, and I learned alchemy during the summers. But enough of that," he said, ending the topic easily. "Let's start with potions first, as it's closest to what you're familiar with."

This time, Edward reacted to what his superior said. "What? We're starting _now_?" he growled out. Not that he was upset about learning the subjects, but he had to at least have some time to prepare himself! What would he do if Roy caught him staring, or if he said something about his true feelings? Willing the heat to leave his face, he saw his crush nod and hung his head in resignation.

"Alright. The easiest thing to start out with is cures, such as…"

* * *

That night, after Draco had left the classroom (Harry would get in trouble later for not showing, but hunting him down now would take too much effort), Roy locked the door and made his way to his private dorm.

He reflected on the day. The students today were just like all the earlier classes: some were smart, some were nice, and they all had opposites. Not very entertaining, but he was sure he made up for it with his dull lectures. The most exciting aspect of his day had to be Edward Elric. The boy had acted stranger than usual; sometimes he would space out, or stumble over his words. Also, his face had gone red a couple of times, and on others, he would have a dreamy expression. It puzzled him. But wasn't everything about the Fullmetal Alchemist a puzzle, something interesting to figure out?

As he was reading a letter sent from his girlfriend in Amestris, he thought of the expressions he had seen on her face. Determined, fearful, happy, lovestruck, embarrassed, sad, angry, longing… Blinking, he backtracked and belatedly realized that he had seen at least three of those expressions on his subordinate's face: the ones he would least expect to see in someone such as him. But why…?

Roy reached the stunning conclusion as he slipped between the soft sheets of his bed, half an hour later.

Edward Elric was in love.


	15. Just a Normal Day

**Chapter Fifteen: Just a Normal Day**

The next morning was very much the same as the last: more gossip had been spread - mostly about Edward Elric and his being held back in class, not to mention the days he had been out - there was more sunny weather, and the alarm clocks were still rudely awakening the slumbering students.

One such victim of these alarm clocks was Ed himself. Not only did the shrill noise awaken him, but he received a bucket of cold water poured over him at the same time, alongside a whack on the head. Cursing, the blond jumped awake and out of bed before hopping back under the covers, deciding he'd rather not have his automail or—he shuddered—cat features noticed by his roommates. However, this invoked further the wrath of his attacker: his bedsheets were soaked in seconds by more of the frigid water, making the poor chimera shiver from the temperature and wetness. He didn't like water, damnit!

Cringing in fear and anticipating another waterfall to hit him, he lay there for a few minutes before poking his head out from beneath and taking a moment to survey the scene.

All the other boys were awake now, a couple of them already dressed. Ron and Harry seemed to be struggling with something small off to the side, but he couldn't see as their hands smothered whatever it was. No one looked to have been trying to wake him up so cruelly; the bucket lay on its side, resting innocently on the floor. Just as Ed was about to speak, Ron beat him to it.

"Blimey, mate, these things can be ferocious," he said in awe. Apparently, the thing he had been wrestling with was now static, and Harry held it now. It was the alarm clock Ed had wrecked prior to the catnip incident.

Revenge was always sweet, and Ed had taken the toll.

Quickly, he pulled the drapery around his bed closed, accepting the robes and towel given to him by an anonymous hand. What a dismal start to the day. He'd barely finished dressing as the last person left, and then pulled on his gloves and shoes. There wasn't much time before his first class, so he rushed down to the Great Hall with the hopes that there would be something left for him to eat.

Luckily, there were still pieces of buttered toast, which were promptly licked clean of their topping before being chomped on while Ed made his way to his first class of the day, alchemy. Honestly, it was bad enough having Roy as a teacher for one day of the week, but twice in a row? Yet another boring lesson for him. It really was curious how he had alchemy as his first subject on both Thursday and Friday, while none of his other classes appeared to be at the same time for two days in a row. Unless, of course, Roy had planned it all out—bore the genius student before keeping him for the rest of the day to teach him every other subject in the school. At least it wasn't so bad; he did, after all, get to stay with Roy for all that time, even during lunch. At that time, the Colonel would leave only to return in five minutes with stacks of food on glinting silver plates, allowing them both to eat as the two of them studied in silence. In fact, it was almost like a day-long date.

Edward's eyes widened a fraction as he considered the thought, settling down in his seat and wiping any remnants of breakfast away with the back of his hand. Could it be that Roy returned his feelings? The man had seemed much nicer to him yesterday, and had helped demonstrate certain spells that were crucial to learning many subjects. He'd also been able to gain Ed access to the restricted section of the castle's vast library, which was a blessing for the chimera's need to restore himself—and for his hunger for knowledge. Even with the tutoring he was receiving, Roy couldn't teach him everything; there were also a few books on alchemy to be found.

The professor entered the room at exactly nine o'clock, tapping Harry on the shoulder, motioning for the boy to follow him. Harry left the table he'd been sharing with Ed and did as requested. Ron and Hermione, also at that table, looked on in pity; Mustang wasn't an overly nice professor, and the punishment for missing a detention … who could know what would happen?

As the alchemist gave Harry a hushed talk—or lecture—Edward fixed his hair into a more reasonable mess than it had been. He undid the scruffy ponytail, reorganizing his hair into a braid, and paid careful attention to tightening it enough to hold his extra set of ears down for the class. If he was lucky, Roy would pull him out for private lessons again and allow him to rest up a bit more. He'd been out of the hospital wing for over twenty-four hours, but his body still felt too sluggish to be normal. And it would also mean more time to learn about Roy …

Said professor had finished lecturing a certain young wizard, sending him back to his seat with final words that the whole class was made to hear. "And no slacking. Despite it being the weekend, I still expect you to finish it." Walking to the front of the room, he flicked his wand at a stack of papers, which went flying around the room, one sheet per student in attendance. The strange thing was not only the content of the page, but the fact that it was on _paper_—as in, not the standard parchment of the castle. And all of the letters on it had been typed.

"Professor," Draco started, "what exactly are you trying to teach us, here? To memorize a bunch of letters?" He received a smirk from the direction of the professor, and a glare from someone at a table of Gryffindors off to his left.

"For your information, Malfoy," Roy said, casting an amused look at the confused students, "that chart you have there is the periodic table of elements, containing a complete list of the elements from the world we live in. From hydrogen to gold, and helium to uranium, they're on there—and you need to know them. The table shows both the complete name and abbreviation of each element, as well as the numerical code for each, and it would be ideal for you to memorize them along with the extra information included on the chart as quickly as you can to facilitate your comprehension in this class. That being said, I should inform you that I will be testing you on your knowledge of the chart in two weeks. And if you tire of that, I have another thing you must learn to do. It may seem tedious, but you must learn how to," he turned and drew on the board, "draw simple shapes perfectly." Standing back, he showcased the image of a triangle inside of a square, surrounded by a circle.

"I would suggest you not ask why, as you shall find that out in the near future. For now, practice and learn; you have the rest of the class period for this."

Beckoning Edward to come forth, he led the youth to a table off to the side and ignored the talking behind him, placing a hand on Ed's left shoulder. "Why don't you read up a bit and practice some potions and charms? I've got a bit of paperwork to catch up on, and a few letters to write, so I'll help you a bit once I'm done." At the affirmative nod, he turned back to his own desk and began placing his signature on the pages that deserved it.

As he began his work off to the side, Ed couldn't help but be stunned at the fact that Roy was actually _willingly_ doing his paperwork.


	16. The End

That evening, Ed sat in the Gryffindor common room, becoming increasingly popular with his classmates as they discovered that he was surprisingly proficient at alchemy. While he was trying to learn about potions and spells-the nonsense of waving a stick and mumbling words still very foreign to him-he was bombarded with questions about what people could do with alchemy and why the elements were important. It all started with a simple question:

"What _are_ these elements?"

Ed snorted, nearly raising his ears in frustration. "They're what make up everything around us," Hermione started with a self-satisfied tone. "Water, for example, is made up of hydrogen and oxygen. Everything contains different combinations of elements to make it, so every material is unique." She couldn't expand on how it applied to alchemy, though; she reckoned it was similar to chemistry.

"There's a process to transmutation," Ed said, flipping a page. "You need to understand what's going on to be able to do it. Once you know what goes into something, you can decompose it into the base elements and recreate it in a new shape afterwards." Now he had the full attention of everyone in the room. He returned to his own studies, but the other students, ever curious about this new skill and classmate, would not relent in their questioning. Giving a resigned sigh, Edward shut his book and began explaining the art from his homeland.

Meanwhile, Harry was working on the assignment Professor Mustang had given him: To write an essay on ten centimeters of parchment about the properties of wood. Hermione had helped him find some of the necessary research materials, but it was all rather dull. He considered for a moment asking Ed for a bit of aid, but seeing the poor guy swamped with Gryffindors and their questions, he retreated to his room to work in silence.

* * *

_This fanfiction is** finished**. I wrote a little thing here for you just for your entertainment, but have no ending planned for here. PM me for future fanfictions-this one is long dead, but I know that people like my fics, and will need inspiration if I want to write more. Thanks for all the support and fic love._


End file.
